


Forty-Eight Hours

by Write_To_You



Category: Agent Carter (TV)
Genre: Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Daniel Is Very Worried, Drama, Duncan Is My OC He's Not From The OCs, F/M, Humor, Injury, Major Character Injury, Missing Persons, Non-Graphic Violence, Oop Spoiler Hehe, Reunions, Romance, She Gets Shot It's Not That Gory, To clarify, Worry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-14
Updated: 2020-06-14
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:07:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24722803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Write_To_You/pseuds/Write_To_You
Summary: Forty-eight hours is the required amount of time you have to wait before reporting a missing person. But when Peggy disappears while investigating a case regarding a new kind of nuclear weapon, Daniel Sousa is worried she might not be able to last that long.
Relationships: Ana Jarvis/Edwin Jarvis, Edwin Jarvis & Daniel Sousa, Peggy Carter & Ana Jarvis, Peggy Carter & Daniel Sousa, Peggy Carter & Edwin Jarvis, Peggy Carter/Daniel Sousa
Comments: 13
Kudos: 39





	Forty-Eight Hours

**Author's Note:**

> Ok so I admit to being a HUGE Steggy shipper but y'all... PEGGY AND DANIEL ARE LIFEEEEE holy smokes. I honestly don't know if I've ever shipped a central cannon ship this much. I'm usually a side-ship obsessor but these two had me rooting for them since the beginning of Season 2 and maybe even before.
> 
> This IS a oneshot, but it's pretty long, so strap in for a wild ride ;)

_Forty-eight hours._

That was the amount of time it was required that you wait before reporting a missing persons case. Before that forty-eight hour mark, the person was just.... misplaced, Daniel supposed. Maybe they had gone for a really, _really_ long walk. Maybe they were staying the night at friend’s house. 

Or maybe they were an undercover agent running point on a mission that included schematics for an upgraded nuclear bomb changing hands. If it was up to Daniel, the alarm bells should be ringing after forty-eight _minutes_ of radio silence in that last scenario, not forty-eight hours. 

“Would you calm down?” Jarvis asked peevishly. Daniel was wearing an uneven hole in his flooring and the repetitive thumping of his crutch was beginning to get irritating. “You _do_ remember that this is Miss Carter that we’re worrying about, don’t you?”

“ _Agent_ Carter,” Daniel corrected harshly. Peggy had had to deal with enough disrespect in her life that it shouldn’t come in the form of an improper surname from someone she considered a friend. 

“You are proving my point,” Jarvis told him. He folded his hands calmly in his lap. “ _Agent_ Carter is the most capable woman we know. If anyone is able to get out of the clutches of our newest adversary, it will be her.” He let out a sigh and eyed Daniel with pity. “I understand how you feel about her, Mr. Sousa, I really do. But I am already going to have to re-wax this portion of the hallway and I don’t want to have to put in new floorboards on top of that.”

Daniel glared at him, lips pinched. “Really?” he asked incredulously. “Peggy was supposed to meet us here over three hours ago and you’re worried about your _flooring_?”

Jarvis let out another sigh and got to his feet, placing his hand on Daniel’s shoulder. “I learned a long time ago that worrying about Peggy gets everyone absolutely nowhere,” he said candidly. “That being said... I _am_ concerned about her current whereabouts. But I trust that she knows what she is doing and is fully qualified to get herself out of any _mess_ she may have fallen into.”

“Yeah, and what if that ‘mess’ was the barrel of a gun?” Sousa shot back. He shook his head, reaching his free hand up to rub at his face. “These men we were dealing with had absolutely no reason to keep Peggy alive. They didn’t need her as leverage and she had no information that they’d want. If they saw something that might compromise their operation, they wouldn’t have any cause not to shoot on sight.”

“In which case,” Jarvis replied softly, “there is absolutely nothing we can do.”

Daniel’s jaw tightened. “I have a hard time resigning myself to that,” he said, but he took a seat.

_Two hours._

That was how long it had taken Peggy Carter to find the abandoned railway station and discover a briefcase filled with bomb blueprints. She had known immediately that this was the information she’d been looking for for the past two and a half weeks and had been just about to grab the papers and run when she’d heard a gun cock behind her head.

The noise wasn’t unfamiliar. In fact, Peggy probably heard the sound of a gun cocking more than she heard her own doorbell. But it was still enough to make her pull up short and carefully raise her hands to ear-height. It was really too bad- if she had just managed to grab the case and make a break for it she could have been right on time for her rendezvous with Daniel and Jarvis. 

Ah well. It would seem she’d have to keep them waiting for just a bit longer. 

“So much for this place being abandoned,” said a gravely voice from behind her. “Who the ‘ell are you, lady?”

“I was simply out for a stroll,” Peggy said, putting on her most harmless, ladylike voice. She had learned a long time ago that being a woman in the 1940’s had it’s challenges, but could be still used to her advantage from time to time. _Especially_ in her field, where people saw stilettos heels and thought weakness and femininity instead of an alternative for a knife. 

“A stroll,” the man repeated flatly. “A stroll, at one in the morning on a Tuesday... _here_?”

Peggy glanced around, taking in the grimy, rotting benches of the train’s waiting area and the rust on the tracks. “I suppose it’s not the most picturesque place for a walk,” she admitted. “But sometimes my mind just gets to wandering and my feet carry me wherever they-”

She broke off with a faint gasp as the round metal end of the gun stuck into her back. 

“Look, honey,” the man said, stepping in closer and lowering his voice. “I’ve had enough ex-wives to know that women aren’t quite as innocent as they seem. So imma ask again: _Who are you_?”

“It seems the jig is up,” Peggy admitted with a faint smile, turning slowly around. “My name is Agent Carter, and I _really_ don’t like it when people call me honey.”

She knocked the gun from the man’s hand with a well-placed knock to his wrist and then grabbed his arm and twisted. The man bent partway at the waist, trying desperately to relieve pressure off of his shoulder. “Hey- hey- heyyy!” he cried, trying for soothing but coming out strained. “Hey, we’re all friends here. Nobody needs to- ah- _ah_!”

Peggy turned her wrist just a little more, effectively shutting him up. “Who left those bomb blueprints here?” she demanded. “And who are you bringing them to?”

She twisted the man’s arm harder, ready to squeeze an answer out of him if that’s what it took, but just then a shot rang out. Peggy ducked instinctively, letting go of her prey and scrambling for her own pistol. 

Another shot went straight through one of the old benches right by her leg, and Peggy dove to the side. She rolled, scanning for cover and ending up behind an abandoned car wreck halfway buried in brush. 

“Whoever you are,” she called from her spot crouched in the dead grasses, “you can’t hide forever! I know your plans now, and-”

The sound of pinging metal directly by her caused Peggy to slam her hands over ears. The next thing she knew, the bullet that had just been ricocheting around in the abandoned car frame sank into her shoulder. Peggy let out a gasp, collapsing backward with the shock.

A figure stepped into view, dressed in a long coat with his fedora pulled low over his face. Peggy, gaze hazy with pain, could only stare as the man in front of her slowly raised his gun. 

“Wait!” she gasped, finally coming to her senses. “Wait, don’t shoot. We- we might be able to help each other.”

The gun listed downwards slightly. Peggy rolled back and lifted up her leg, knocking the weapon aside with a high-heeled foot. She heard the sound of tearing fabric and realized her skirt had ripped at the movement, but there were more important things to worry about than propriety at this point. 

The man lunged for her with his hands outstretched and Peggy rolled. Pain flared in her shoulder and she bit back a groan, staggering to her feet and readying herself for a fight. 

Another shot rang out. The first man she’d tussled with had regained control of his firearm and had it leveled at her. With her attention split between two attackers, Peggy was unable to dodge the next bullet that came flying her way. 

It hit her leg and Peggy crumpled, the motion setting her rolling down the grassy embankment leading towards the swamp. 

When Peggy hit the water, she saw a haze of red bloom out from her shoulder. She gazed at it, dazed with pain and shock, and then lifted her eyes towards the top of the embankment she’d just come down. There didn’t seem to be anyone there, but Peggy knew she shouldn’t take any chances. She dragged herself out of the water and half-rolled, half-crawled towards an outcropping of bushes a couple yards away.

It was only once she was sure she was completely hidden from view that she allowed the world to fade to black. 

_Five hours._

It had been five entire hours since Peggy had been first reached the train station and been attacked, though _she_ didn’t actually know that. After she had fainted in the bushes, she’d awoken with no sense of how much time had passed. Her car, the one she’d borrowed from Jarvis to take on her investigation, was gone. So was the briefcase, the bomb blueprints, and her two adversaries. 

Peggy sat herself down on one of the deteriorating benches and took a deep breath in through her nose. Her shoulder was white hot with pain and her leg was almost entirely covered with blood on the bottom left side. If she wasn’t careful, she would bleed out before she managed to get any help.

Moving carefully, Peggy tore the bottom hem off of her skirt. It was already ripped down the side from her actions earlier, and the loss of fabric at the bottom couldn’t make any more revealing than that. Besides, she needed the material to wrap tightly around her calf. The bullet, as it turned out, had only grazed her leg, but the blood was still coming quickly.

Once her leg was taken care of, Peggy moved onto her shoulder. She hadn’t been quite so lucky to escape with just a graze on her upper half, but the bullet hadn’t gone all the way through which meant she’d only be bleeding from one side. Peggy gingerly peeled off her jacket, wincing every time she moved her shoulder too much. Then she tore more pieces of fabric from the article of clothing and made herself a makeshift sling and bandages.

It wasn’t great work. The material from her clothes wasn’t designed to absorb the amount of blood soaking into it. But Peggy just had to hope that it would be enough to keep her from passing out on her way to get help.

The first establishment she came across, a diner, was closed. Peggy hobbled up to the front door anyway and hammered loudly on it.

“Hey!” the man inside, presumably the owner, yelled. “Can’t you read?! Closed! Coffee’s not made yet, anyway.” 

Peggy gritted her teeth. Considering she had just walked quite a long way with a shot leg, she was _not_ in the mood for this. “I don’t want your coffee!” she replied, resting a hand on the doorframe to keep her balance. “I just need to use your phone.”

“Don’t got one,” the owner replied shortly. He strode up to the window, took one look at her haggard appearance, and wrinkled his nose with distaste. Then he pulled the blinds down and Peggy heard a lock turn.

She threw up her hands in irritation and turned away. Clearly, her time would be better spent looking for somewhere else than arguing with this man.

At the rate she was moving, it took Peggy a full half hour to reach the next building. In the area where she was stranded, the streets were empty and stores were few and far between. This next building appeared to be completely abandoned, and Peggy took a seat on the side of the road and let out a groan.

There had to be some way she could contact her team. At the thought of her team, specifically Daniel, Peggy’s chest contracted. He would notice she was missing. He had to. 

Not that it would do him much good. By law, they had to wait a full forty-eight hours before field agents could be sent out for a manhunt. Daniel hadn’t known where she was going- _she_ had barely known where she was going- and so he wouldn’t know where to find her.

So she was stuck in the middle of nowhere with no help, two gunshot wounds, and not a single idea on how to change either of those things.

_Forty-eight hours._

That was how long Daniel had to wait before enlisting the help of the entire SSR so they could comb the streets looking for Peggy. Of course, if she was already dead then all of that would be pretty useless, but Daniel was trying to stay positive.

It wasn’t easy. With Jarvis in the driver’s seat, the two of them had checked every place where Peggy might have gone. Her house was a bust, no one had seen her anywhere at work, and her favorite café was a no-go. It had officially been eight hours since Daniel had received any contact from Peggy and by now he knew for sure that something had gone awry. 

“I simple don’t know what else there is to be done,” Jarvis admitted, pulling over on the side of the road so they could figure out their next destination. “Do you _really_ believe that Miss Carter would would just... wander off to amuse herself and forget to check in?”

“No, not really,” Daniel admitted. He rubbed his forehead, wishing he had a better solution than driving fruitlessly around the city. “But I don’t feel right just sitting doing nothing.”

“Nor do I,” Jarvis admitted.

Daniel raised his eyebrow. “I thought you weren’t worried about her?”

“I will remind you that I made that statement quite a few hours ago,” Jarvis told him stiffly. “I am now significantly more concerned for Miss Carter’s well-being than I was previously. She does not have a tendency to be late, no, but I still had hopes at first that she would make an appearance and all would be well.” He shuddered a little. “I am now forced into the impression that all is _not_ well, and that we would be wise _to_ be worried for her.”

“If only worrying about her would tell us where she was,” Daniel murmured. “And you’re sure there’s no tracker or anything on her car? Something that could lead us to her?”

Jarvis frowned. “Now that you mention it... Mr. Stark _does_ have the tendency to put some sort of location device on most of his belongings. The car Miss Carter was in was a rental from Mr. Stark’s personal garage... we could just have some luck finding her using it.”

“Well, why didn’t you say so before?” Daniel demanded. “Let’s go!”

_Nine hours._

By the time half a day had passed, Peggy was nearly faint with blood loss and thirst. She had been walking for who knew how long, watching as the light slowly shifted across the beaten up street as the sun rose in the sky. 

Considering the sun was now almost overhead, Peggy had to guess that it was nearly noon. She hadn’t come across anyone save for a homeless man huddled on the street corner, but he hadn’t offered her much help. The whole area was deserted. Peggy had to hand it to her adversaries; they certainly knew how to pick a good handoff location if they hadn’t wanted to be discovered.

After so many hours, Peggy would have hoped that she would have gotten _somewhere_. But with the state of her leg and the amount of blood she had already lost, it was slow moving. In fact, she was coming to the conclusion that she was going to die an incredibly long death when she came across the first building she’d seen for miles.

There was a faded sign hanging on a post: _‘Duncans: Get your Gasoline, Water and Snacks for Cheap!”_ Next to the sign was a dirty gas pump, and beyond that was a small convenience store with the front door standing open. 

Peggy felt a grin break over her face and she hobbled as quickly as possible towards the store. “Excuse me!” she called, almost falling inside. “Excuse me, is anyone here?”

“That’s usually what I’m asking.” A round man with a large bald spot walked slowly out of the back room, holding a plastic water bottle. “What can I do for- great Caesar’s ghost what happened to _you_?”

Peggy winced, spreading her arms in a helpless shrug. “You don’t happen to have a phone, do you?” she asked hopefully. “I really need to make a call.”

“Yeah, to the nearest hospital,” the man replied, pulling a face and starting to head to the side of the store. “We’ve got a phone back here. I’m Duncan, by the way.”

“Peggy Carter. It’s nice to meet you, Duncan,” Peggy said. She followed him slowly towards the phone at the side of the room and let out a long breath when the device was finally in her hand. 

“I’ll... give you a little space,” Duncan excused himself, offering her a weak smile and giving her another sideways glance before hurrying away. 

Peggy gazed down at herself. Her skirt was torn and her legs were so covered with blood and dirt that you could barely see her bandage anymore. Her shoulder and the ends of her hair were caked in blood and grime, too. She could almost imagine how bad her face appeared, makeup running with perspiration and skin pale from blood loss.

After considering for a second, Peggy dialed Daniel’s work phone. She held her end eagerly to her ear, waiting for a pick up. After a tense few moments, the line went to the SSR’s switchboard operator. “Hi,” Peggy said hurriedly. “This is Peggy Carter-”

“Oh, Peggy Carter!” Rose cried. “It is _funny_ gettin‘ a call from you. What can I do for ya?”

“I need you to put me through to Daniel Sousa,” Peggy replied, though she was unable to resist a small smile at her work-friend’s enthusiasm. “It’s urgent.”

“Will do, will do,” Rose told her, and the line quickly switched over. 

It rang for awhile and Peggy bit her lip, waiting anxiously. 

No one picked up.

“No luck?” Duncan asked as Peggy groaned and let her head fall against the wall. 

“No,” Peggy replied grimly. “I’m going to try a different number, though.”

“I’m still thinking the hospital is your best bet,” Duncan told her with a wry smile. “And I’d say you should maybe take my advice because I can actually see whatcha look like.” 

Peggy laughed a little. “You know, I think I quite like you, Duncan,” she said, and tried the Jarvis’ home phone.

To her relief, someone picked up. “Hello?” Ana Jarvis asked in her pleasant Irish accent. “Who is this?”

“Ana, it’s Peggy,” Peggy said, letting out a deep breath of relief. “Is your husband home?”

“No, Edwin is out with a young gentleman,” Ana informed her. “A... Susan, was it? They left early this morn.”

“Sousa?” Peggy asked eagerly. “Daniel Sousa? Average height, walks with a crutch?”

“That’d be him,” Ana confirmed. “Can I take a message?”

“Do you know how I can get in touch with them?” Peggy demanded. She was still a little unsure how much Jarvis told his wife about what she did (and what _he_ did), and she didn’t want to reveal too much. “It’s urgent.”

Ana hummed thoughtfully into the receiver. “Well, it’s almost lunchtime, so Edwin should be getting home soon. Maybe he’ll bring Mr. Sousa with him?”

“Ok.” Peggy chewed on her lip again, unsure of what next step to take. “Well, thank you Ana. If your husband and Daniel return, tell them that I called and that I’m alright. And that I’m in- one moment.” She covered the receiver. “Duncan? Where exactly are we?”

“Other than the middle of nowhere?” Duncan replied with a snort. “We’re at 13 Cutter’s Street, right near where the old B Train used to be. You can see the railroad right through the trees there, and-”

“Wonderful, thank you,” Peggy interrupted, turning back to her conversation. She relayed the information to Ana, who chirped that she would pass on the message as soon as Edwin was home.

By the time Peggy hung up, she was feeling incredibly drained. “I really hate to trouble you further,” she said told Duncan, walking lethargically back into the center of the convenience store. “But would you happen to have any water? I don’t have any money.”

Duncan snorted and waved her off. “If you don’t mind me saying, you look like a wreck. I think that _I’d_ pay _you_ to have something to drink. And eat. Pick a snack; on the house.”

“I don’t think I’ve done much to deserve that.”

Duncan shrugged, smiling a bit. “You’re the first company I’ve had in days. That’s enough for me.” 

_Forty-eight hours._

Forty-eight hours until an official search, and Daniel was counting every second. They had made it to one of Howard Stark’s facilities in about a half hour. It had taken twenty minutes for Jarvis to locate the correct car that Peggy had been in, and nearly an hour for them to follow the tracker. 

“There- there!” Daniel cried, catching sight of a beige Buick, pulled so close to the side of the road that it was almost up on the curb. 

Jarvis yanked the wheel and the car they were in went screeching to the side of the road, almost throwing Daniel through the window in the process.

“Sorry,” Jarvis apologized, cringing a bit. “That may have been a bit too.... _vigorous_.”

“You think?” Daniel asked rhetorically, shaking his head and slamming the car door on his way out.

The two of them hurried over to the Buick and Daniel peered into a window. “It’s empty,” he reported, squinting a little against the glare of the windows. The sun was almost fully peaked in the sky now and it was starting to get hot. 

“Well, look for clues!” Jarvis prompted excitedly. “Don’t you have a- a magnifying glass and a fingerprint kit buried somewhere in those many pockets?”

Daniel frowned at him, trying to figure out if he was kidding. “It’s _Peggy’s car_ ,” he said slowly. “She drove it here, which means she must be close.” He straightened from the car and began to scan the area, calculating their best next move. 

“Unless she didn’t drive it here,” Jarvis countered. “In which case, we must look around and see who _did_ drive it here.”

“Why do you think she didn’t drive it here?” Daniel asked him. 

Jarvis shifted slightly. “Well, the readings on the car said that it hasn’t been turned on for over seven hours.”

“Seven-” Daniel spluttered. “Seven _hours_?! And you didn’t think to give me that piece of information before we drove all the way here? Why would a car abandoned for seven entire hours give us _any_ insight into where Peggy is right now?”

Jarvis looked somewhat taken aback. “Well, I merely supposed that we needed a next step and that this car would be considered a lead,” he huffed. “Besides, as I mentioned before, the car is still a clue to Peggy’s whereabouts. If we can figure out who took the car, maybe we can figure out who took _Peggy_ , as well.”

Daniel shook his head. “No,” he said shortly. “Because a car abandoned for seven hours gets us no closer to finding a bad guy than it does to finding Peggy.” 

He turned and limped back to Jarvis’ car, yanking open the door to let himself in. Jarvis released a deep sigh and made his way to the drivers side of the car, getting calmly inside.

“Mr. Sousa,” he began. “I recognize that you try to keep your.... _feelings_ for Miss Carter under wraps, but you do not do a good job.”

Daniel raised his eyebrow. 

“My point,” Jarvis hurried on, “is that, while I fully comprehend how it feels to be afraid for the woman you love, you will not solve anything by breaking the door of my car. Or beating me to death with your crutch.”

Daniel’s lips quirked upward and he let out a huff of a laugh. “You know what- you’re completely right,” he said after a long moment. “You are. I’m- I’m terrified. I’m _terrified_. Because if something’s- if something’s happened to Peggy... I honestly don’t know what I’m going to do.”

He looked over at the other man, face grim. “I realize I’ve been taking it out on you, when all you’ve been trying to do is give me a helping hand. So,” he held out his hand for Jarvis to shake, “I promise you I’m done with that. No matter what happens or where Peggy is, it’s not your fault. I shouldn’t be acting like it is.”

Jarvis’ eyebrows furrowed slightly and he gave a quick nod, shaking Daniel’s hand. “I appreciate the sentiment,” he said. “Now, I believe that it is time that we take a brief break and head back to my home for lunch. Ana likes to eat promptly at 12:30 and I have not missed that time slot in almost two years.”

Daniel opened his mouth, wanting to protest, but Jarvis held up his hand. “Ah ah ah. I will remind you that we, at the present moment, have nowhere else to look for Peggy without scouring the entire city of New York and beyond. And, if we decide that that _is_ our next step, no matter how desperate, we should not begin that search on an empty stomach. We lunch.”

“Fine,” Daniel sighed, and sat back in his chair and Jarvis pulled back onto the road.

_Eleven hours._

It had been almost exactly eleven hours since Peggy had arrived at the railway station and tried to acquire the bomb blueprints, at least according to Duncan’s clock. 

“It’s a little slow,” he apologized, rubbing the back of his sunburnt neck and he gazed up at the dusty clock on the wall of his store. “Might be more like... 12:30, or so. Hard to say.”

“Not as though it really matters,” Peggy said with a wry smile. With some food and water in her she was feeling quite a bit better, though the adrenaline had officially faded and left her body throbbing.

She and Duncan were sitting in folding plastic chairs by the checkout counter. Peggy had given Duncan a weak cover of being attacked and left stranded to explain the bullet wounds, though she couldn’t quite seem to come up with something to get him to stop bothering her about calling an ambulance.

It was true- she might have been a bit passed a simple self-stitch-up job on her living room couch with some strong alcohol to dull the pain. But Peggy was determined to make contact with Daniel and Jarvis before she got toted off to some strict hospital somewhere out in the far reaches of New York City, where she’d be unable to tell her team the latest update about the bomb blueprints.

_The bomb blueprints._ In all of this madness with her struggling to find help, Peggy had almost forgotten the reason she was in this situation in the first place. She had failed at getting the blueprints and now they were in the hands of someone who was fully prepared to make the next nuclear bomb. If that happened, they would all be in a _lot_ worse shape than Peggy was at that moment.

“Hey, so who’d you call, anyway?” Duncan spoke up, breaking her out of her thoughts. He was peering at the clock again. “You’ve been here for awhile and no one’s showed up.”

Peggy’s lips pinched. “I tried to contact my boy.... friend...?” She shook her head. “My friend. Partner. My parter. I tried to contact my partner and our friend.”

“You seem very sure of that,” Duncan said with a teasing smirk.

Peggy made a face. “Originally I called my partner at his place of work, but he wasn’t there. Then I tried Jarvis- the friend- at his home. His wife picked up and said she’d deliver my message when they got home for supper. Which....” Now it was her turn to look at the clock, “if it _is_ as close to 12:30 as you believe, should be any minute now. Then he and Daniel -my partner- will come and pick me up, and I can be out of your hair.”

“Not much hair to be in,” Duncan told her wryly. 

Peggy sat back with a deep sigh, trying to reposition her skirt so it covered as much leg as possible. Duncan had to be the most easygoing, kind convenience store owner in the world.

Or maybe he was just as lonely as he said.

_Forty-eight hours._

Forty-eight hours until Daniel could officially call Peggy’s disappearance in. Though, even if that law _didn’t_ exist, he wouldn’t be calling in much of anything at the moment.

He had Jarvis had just pulled up the crushed stone drive to Edward and Ana’s home. It was 12:23, according to Daniel‘s wristwatch, which meant that they were early. 

The two men unloaded themselves from the car and started up the walk, Jarvis reaching the front door first. Ana opened it and pulled him down for a kiss long enough that Daniel felt the need to look away.

“Oh, your friend called,” Ana mentioned when they broke apart. “Peggy Carter?”

Daniel’s head shot up. “ _What?_ ” he said urgently.

“Peggy Carter,” Ana repeated, frowning a little. “You know, the young British woman who-”

“Yes, yes, we know who she is,” Jarvis interrupted impatiently. “Ana, what did she say when she called you? Is she alright?”

“She said to tell you she’s fine,” Ana told him. She frowned a little. “She told me where she was but I can’t seem to remember.”

Daniel went cold. They had been _so close_ to finding Peggy, only to be set back by... this?

“But! I wrote it down,” Ana went on, turning and walking into the house. “Come along. I’ll find the address and then we can eat.”

“Oh, bless you and your incessant need to record everything,” Jarvis muttered, relief evident on his face as he followed his wife inside their house. 

By the time Daniel made it up the front steps and inside, Ana was squinting at a scrap of paper. “13 Cutter Street,” she reported. “That’s where she is.”

“Okay.” Daniel let out a breath. “Ana, you don’t happen to have a map that I could borrow, do you?”

“I do!” Ana chirped, turning to the drawer of her desk to retrieve it for him.

Jarvis sighed. “I’m sorry, my dear. I’m afraid that I’m going to have to miss lunch.”

“No,” Daniel said firmly. “No, you stay here. We have no way to know if this address is a trap or the real deal, and if we both go there’ll be no one to tell the SSR what’s happened.” He put his hand on Jarvis’ shoulder, looking at him seriously. “Thank you for _everything_ you’ve done to help today. Now it’s time for you to have lunch with your wife. I’ll bring Peggy home; I promise.”

“I have no doubt of that,” Jarvis replied, his confidence in the agent apparent in the steadiness of his gaze.

“Here,” Ana said, handing him the map and an apple. “For the road.”

He nodded at both of them, took the keys from Jarvis, and hurried back to the car. 

Daniel had been driving for almost twenty miles without a single building or other car in sight when he sped past a small sign that read ‘Cutter Street’. He slammed down on the breaks, thanked God that there hadn’t been anyone behind him, and made an illegal u-turn so he could turn down the street. 

Considering the state of Cutter Street, it wasn’t hard to find the building Peggy had called from. It was the only one that seemed to be open and functional, the front door even standing ajar and awaiting customers.

“Peggy!” Daniel yelled as he threw himself out of the car and began to crutch as fast as he could towards the store. “ _Peggy_!”

Peggy, who had just opened up a package of peanut butter crackers to share with Duncan, heard the cry and shot to her feet. Duncan frowned a little. “Let me guess. That’s the partner?”

“That is indeed the partner,” Peggy said with a wide smile, limping quickly to the door of the convenience store. “Daniel, I’m here!”

Daniel caught sight of Peggy pushing her way out of the store, covered in blood and dirt and looking worse for wear. He threw his crutch aside and hopped the last few feet, grabbing her in his arms and holding on tightly.

Peggy, who wasn’t usually one for hugs, appreciated this one. She pressed her face into Daniel’s shoulder and felt the tension seeping out of her body. All too soon, he was pulling back and looking her over. “You’ve been shot,” he realized. “We need to get you to a hospital.”

“The blueprints,” Peggy said, ignoring him, “I found them, but two men got the jump on me. I assume they think I’m dead, but they still got the blueprints to the bomb.”

“We can worry about that later,” Daniel told her, eyebrows furrowing. “All that matters is that you’re okay.”

She looked at him, touched. “While I... respectfully disagree with that, it is.... appreciated.”

“Hello, partner,” Duncan called. He was leaning on the doorframe with his arms crossed, watching the two of them. “Where’s the friend?”

“Yes, where is Jarvis?” Peggy asked curiously, taking a conscious step away from Daniel now that Duncan was watching them.

“Forget Jarvis, who is that?” Daniel asked, frowning in the direction of the large man.

“Daniel, meet Duncan, the owner of Duncan’s Convenience Store,” Peggy introduced. “Also the man who saved my life.”

“Pfft, I just let her use my phone and eat some crackers,” Duncan deflected. He held up the package that Peggy had abandoned in her haste to get to Daniel. “Do you still want some of these or can I eat them?”

Peggy laughed. “You go right ahead,” she said. “We should get going.”

Daniel nodded. “You need to get stitched up,” he told her. “Your shoulder looks pretty bag.”

“Leg, too,” Peggy told him. Daniel hobbled back to pick up his abandoned crutch and then held out his free arm to help Peggy. It wasn’t easy to get the two of them to Jarvis’ car considering both their disabilities, but they managed. 

Before Peggy got into the passengers seat, she looked back to Duncan. “Thank you so much,” she said. “I’m not sure if I would even be alive without you.”

“Saving someone’s life; that’s a first for me,” Duncan admitted with a wide smile. “Glad I could be of assistance. Chances to help people come few and far between when you work all the way out here.” He glanced around at the empty streets and sighed. “It was darned nice to meet you, Peggy. I hope to see you someday again.”

Peggy smiled back at him. “You might just,” she said, and got in the car. 

_Forty-eight hours._

That’s how long Peggy would have had to wait for the SSR to release a whole team of agents to look for her. Luckily, it had only taken her a quarter of that time for her to get _herself_ found. 

Her bullet wounds had been taken care of and she was sitting on Jarvis and Ana’s couch with a glass of water. Her gaze was dulled with pain medication but she was smiling as she watched Daniel occupy himself with fixing up her gauze and medical supplies so he could change her bandages later. 

“Is there anything I can get you, Miss Carter?” Jarvis asked her pleasantly, hands clasped behind his back. He had been overjoyed to see Peggy whole and mostly-okay, and was now sacrificing one of his couches to make sure she rested.

“I’m alright, thank you, Mr. Jarvis,” Peggy answered with a smile. She leaned forward and put her water glass down on the coffee table in front of her. Jarvis quickly moved it to a coaster. “And thank you for everything you did to help find me.”

“But of course,” Jarvis replied with a half-bow. “I consider it my duty to know where you are at all times, and if I do _not_ know, I consider it my duty to find that information. Now, I must go assist Ana with dinner. Give a holler if you require my services.”

He bowed again and left Daniel and Peggy alone.

“You’re not in too much pain?” Daniel asked Peggy, eyes dark with concern. He moved her drink to the side and perched on the edge of the coffee table across from her, putting a hand gently on her knee. 

Peggy shook her head. “No,” she assured him. “No, though I am positive I will be sore tomorrow.” She glanced over at her shoulder, bare due to the tank top she was dressed in, and took in the thick bandages padding the area. “Thank you, again, for coming to find me.”

“I’d love to take the credit but we never would have found you if it wasn’t for, well... you,” Daniel replied with a wry smile. “Even shot, you managed to get yourself to a safe place. You never cease to amaze me, Peg.” 

Peggy colored slightly, lowering her gaze. “You would have done the same,” she murmured. 

Daniel shrugged, unconvinced but not about to fight her on the point. “Doesn’t matter,” he deflected. “You _did_ do it. And I’m glad you did, because.... if we- if _I_ \- had found you in that spot in the bushes and you had been... you had been dead, I-” He shook his head. “Well, I’m trying not to think about it too much. But it wouldn’t have been good.”

Peggy looked at him sympathetically. “With the work we do, you have to be prepared, Daniel,” she told him gently. “I know that it’s not easy, nor is it ideal. But something could very easily happen to me out in the field. Or you, for that matter.”

“I know.” Daniel swallowed and reached up to press his fingers to Peggy’s cheek. “Doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

She titled her head into his touch and covered her hand with her own. “Of course not. But I promise that I will do whatever it takes to make it back to you.”

“May I kiss you?” Daniel asked quietly, as their hands fell to her lap and intertwined.

Peggy’s lips quirked. “Most men wouldn’t ask for permission.”

Daniel laughed, ducking his head. “I generally try not to be most men.”

“Of course you can kiss me,” Peggy told him softly, lifting his chin with her free hand and leaning closer so their lips could meet. 

Daniel would never know if Peggy could have lasted the forty-eight hours needed before she would officially be labeled as a missing person. He would never know if _he_ could. Because Peggy was home and safe, and if Daniel had any say in the matter nothing like this would ever happen again.

But then again, it was Peggy, and Daniel would probably be better off working to change the forty-eight hour law than he would be trying to keep her out of harms way.

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed this, I will be posting more PeggySous in the near future! Tried posting them on my fanfiction.net account and have barely gotten a reaction.... I'm hoping for a bit more of one on here. I know that this show is on the older side, but maybe there will still be some straggler fans like myself who come poking around for some PeggySous fics :)


End file.
